Sports Extra

NEW YORK – Marvin Miller was a labor economist who never played a day of organized baseball. He preferred tennis. Yet he transformed the national pastime as surely as Babe Ruth, Jackie Robinson, television and night games.

Miller, the union boss who won free agency for baseball players in 1975, ushering in an era of multimillion-dollar contracts and athletes who switch teams at the drop of a batting helmet, died Tuesday at 95. He had been diagnosed with liver cancer in August.

In his 16½ years as executive director of the Major League Players Association, starting in 1966, Miller fought owners on many fronts, not only achieving free agency but making the word “strike” stand for something other than a pitched ball.

NHL

Owners, the players’ union will meet again on Day 74

Date: Tuesday, Nov. 27.

Day: 73.

Last Negotiations: Wednesday, Nov. 21, in New York.

Next Negotiations: Wednesday, Nov. 28, with federal mediators in an undisclosed location.

Games Lost: 423 (all games through Dec. 14, plus the New Year’s Day Winter Classic and All-Star weekend).

Local television station KCTV aired footage of Charles waiting for Manning’s signature after the Chiefs’ 17-9 loss. Charles told the TV station he was getting the autograph for his mom.

Texans running back Arian Foster tweeted that he got Charles’ autograph at the 2010 Pro Bowl, and that he exchanges with players “damn near every game.”

Charles tweeted Tuesday: “Thank for the support and relax on the P Manning story, just two warriors showing each other respect.”

College Football

Big East spells Rutgers with East Carolina and Tulane

PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island – The Big East moved quickly to replace Rutgers and braced for more possible departures, getting Tulane and East Carolina to agree to join the reinvented conference in 2014.

Tulane in New Orleans and East Carolina in Greenville, N.C., will make it six Conference USA schools to join the Big East in the last two years.

Rutgers announced a week ago that it would leave the Big East for the Big Ten.

Boise State and San Diego State, currently in the Mountain West, are set to join for football only starting in 2013, anchoring the Big East’s new West Division. Also on schedule to join next season are current C-USA members Southern Methodist, Houston, Memphis and Central Florida.

Navy has committed to join the Big East for football in 2015.

In 2014, Old Dominion will join C-USA, and Charlotte is scheduled to join with its fledgling football program in 2015.

MLS

Yallop is coach of the year; Johnson is comeback player

NEW YORK – Frank Yallop of the San Jose Earthquakes was honored as Major League Soccer’s Coach of the Year, and the Seattle Sounders’ Eddie Johnson is Comeback Player of the Year.

After the Earthquakes finished with the 14th-best record out of 18 teams in 2011, they went 19-6-9 this season to lead MLS.

After struggling to find consistency for three years playing in Europe, Johnson returned to MLS this season and scored 14 goals in 28 games. The forward also won comeback player of the year honors in 2007.